Moreno Valley school officials plan to go back to the public after they couldnât decide how voters should choose trustees.

âWe are going to be educating the community some more,â said Judy White, superintendent of the Moreno Valley Unified School District.

The district held six public meetings last month at which it presented two proposals for electing school board members by area instead of at-large from the entire school district. But those meetings were poorly attended and some residents seemed confused as to why the board was considering the change, officials said.

âEither they didnât fully understand or they just said âIf itâs not broken why fix it,ââ Trustee Cleveland Johnson said.

Most California school districts have made the switch because of the potential of lawsuits under the 2001 California Voting Rights Act. The law allows for a protected class, such as a minority group, to sue if at-large elections hinder their ability to elect members of their community.

At a Feb. 25 meeting, the school board was unable to get a majority vote in favor of either proposal. Trustee Gary Baugh was absent, leading to a 2-2 deadlock on the first proposal, while the second proposal was backed only by Trustee Jesus Holguin.

White said she expects to gather more information for the board and take the issue back for a future meeting when all five members are present. Sheâs not sure when that will be.

Board President Tracey Vackar and Johnson backed the first option, which Vackar said seemed better suited to allow for future growth expected in the eastern part of the city.

Holguin said he backed the second option because the boundary areas seemed even in geographic size. In both options, the five trustee areas would have equal populations of about 33,000 residents.

Holguin and Vackar said the board also could consider putting the question to voters in November.

Vackar said she believes the district needs to move to a trustee-area system of election.

âI do think it would make it easier for the public to have more options, for people to run,â she said.

Potential lawsuits are a concern, school officials say, even though Moreno Valley historically has not had a problem electing minorities to its school board.

âI donât want to bring any burden on my school district,â Johnson said.

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